Yonas Mulugeta, CEO of CSL Immobilien , sums up the findings from the current CSL Real Estate Market Report 2021 . According to a corresponding press release, this applies in particular to the office market. The vacancy rate for offices has reached a high: the available supply of commercial space has increased by 23 percent to 2.26 million square meters in the course of the past year. That is the highest value since 2014.
At the same time, however, the demand for central locations in major centers such as Zurich increased. The authors of the report deduce from this that the home office is not the end of the office. Instead, office space would be used more as social meeting and collaboration places. Because "Location factors such as an urban environment with attractive lunch or leisure options or proximity to customers and industry meeting points have become more important as a result of the pandemic".
The vacancy rate in the residential market has also reached a high. In the previous year, the Swiss average rose from 1.66 to 1.72 percent – a value that was last reached in 1988. Outside the major centers, high vacancy rates of over 2 or 3 percent are not uncommon in all of Switzerland. CSL expects vacancies to continue to rise and rents to fall in 2021. Residential property has benefited from the increased value of a beautiful home during the pandemic. Because of the increasing number of homeworkers, real estate in more peripheral locations would have found buyers more easily.
For multi-asset investors in particular, real estate investments have become a replacement for bonds with negative interest rates. Returns in all real estate asset classes continued to decline.
The s: stebler company has already concluded three partnerships this year. This emerges from media releases from the manufacturer of letterbox systems, depot boxes and roof windows from Oensingen.
Firstly, s: stebler is working with the start-up LivingPackets . The company, founded in 2016 in Nantes, France, has developed an intelligent delivery box that can be digitally locked. Among other things, the box is equipped with a GPS and Internet connection, which means that the delivery can be monitored at any time. In addition, the box is reusable, which reduces the waste generated in online retail. Thanks to the partnership, parcels in the intelligent boxes are delivered directly to multifunctional parcel stations called s: yourbox from s: stebler. The customer will be notified as soon as the delivery arrives.
Second, s: stebler works with the Zurich start-up Allthings . Allthings has developed a tenant platform, thanks to which all interactions between tenants, property owners and other service providers can be recorded. Together with the letterbox and parcel compartment systems from s: stebler, “total solutions” are now to be created which “significantly increase tenant loyalty and efficiency,” it says.
Thirdly, s: stebler cooperates with Bird Home Automation , a leading manufacturer of IP door stations. The aim is to integrate IP video door intercom systems from the Berlin company into letterboxes and letterbox systems from s: stebler. Building operators can manage the intelligent door intercom system remotely and integrate it into existing home automation systems.
The Procimmo SA is its Swiss Commercial Fund II (Procimmo II) in late March on the SIX Swiss Exchange shares listed, the asset manager of collective real estate investments informed in a release . Procimmo II was set up in 2014 for a limited group of investors. Since then, the fund, which mainly holds commercial, industrial and logistics properties, has achieved an average return of 7.4 percent, Procimmo reports.
In addition, the fund has paid an annual dividend of at least 5 francs per unit over 100 francs, is further explained in the announcement. The fund currently comprises 33 properties in German-speaking Switzerland. The assets invested in Procimmo II amounted to CHF 563.4 million as of September 30th. On the corresponding reporting date in the previous year, it was 470.3 million francs.
Before going public, Procimmo intends to carry out a further capital increase of around 60 million francs, the company informs in the announcement. The funds brought in are to be used to reduce the debt financing quota and to continue existing construction projects. In addition, Procimmo is examining additional investments in economically active regions outside the city centers.
The monthly rent index compiled by the digital real estate marketplace homegate.ch from TX Group in cooperation with Zürcher Kantonalbank closed at 115.4 points in January. Compared to the previous month, the prices for advertised rents have risen by an average of 0.17 percent, explains homegate.ch in a corresponding message . An increase in rental prices of 0.87 percent has been observed over the past twelve months.
In a monthly comparison, homegate.ch shows different developments for the individual cantons. The strongest rise in asking rents in January, at 1.59 percent, was observed in the canton of Nidwalden. In the cantons of Appenzell-Innerhoden, Appenzell-Ausserhoden, Uri and Wallis, asking rents rose above average with values between 1.08 and 1.24 percent. Declines were measured in the cantons of Zurich, Neuchâtel and Jura with values between -0.57 percent and -0.10 percent.
Homegate.ch also makes different developments in the cities. The largest increase was measured here in a monthly comparison of 2.01 percent in Lausanne. The analysts describe the development in Zurich as “noticeable”. Here rental prices fell by 1.00 percent in January compared to the previous month.
In the quality-adjusted recording of rental price changes for the rental index, the rental prices are corrected for the different quality, location and size of the apartments. This makes it possible to record the actual rental price development, it says in the message.
Parquery has completed a successful financing round, according to a message on LinkedIn. The spin-off from the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology Zurich ( ETH ) was able to win the Dutch construction and plant engineering company VolkerWessels as an investor.
Parquery has developed software that analyzes images from street cameras in real time. This enables drivers to find out, for example, whether there are free parking spaces in their vicinity. The platform can also be used, for example, to analyze the flow of traffic in cities. Overall, it helps build smart cities.
With the fresh money, Parquery wants to strengthen its platform on the one hand in the area of intelligent parking. On the other hand, it is to be further developed for new solutions in the field of intelligent cities.
Parquery has also been working with Hyrde , a subsidiary of VolkerWessels, for a number of years. Hyrde uses the Parquery solution, for example, for security applications at airports and for intelligent mobility projects in cities.
The board of directors of arv Baustoffrecycling Schweiz proposes Adrian Amstutz as new president to the general assembly. He justifies this in a press release with the experiences of Amstutz as the former owner of an architecture and construction management office, as mayor of Sigriswil BE and as SVP national and state council. Amstutz also chaired the central board of the ASTAG commercial vehicle association for twelve years.
Amstutz is to succeed Thomas Merz. He resigned as president of the association in autumn after five years. Since then, Vice President Kurt Morgan has been running the President on an interim basis.
The association was founded in 1990 and is based in Schlieren. He advocates the interests of recyclers of construction waste. The election of the new President is scheduled for the General Assembly on May 19.
The Schneider Spannagel architects' office in Döttingen has had a change in management to review its market presence. After the age-related resignation of a member of the management, the company's appearance was checked. The result was a complete redesign of the brand with a new name and a new, modern logo: LUMO Architekten AG . The down-to-earth architecture firm Schneider Spannagel became LUMO Architects, understood as a contemporary, agile studio.
In amedia release fromthe advertising agency Megura AG in Baden, which was entrusted with the “total renovation of the brand presence”, it is said that the new name LUMO stands for “light, uncomplicated, modern, open”. That corresponds to the values and working methods of the office as well as the architectural style of the realized buildings.
In addition to the new name and logo, including a new website, Megura also designed letterheads, signage and the like. The lightness and joy of experimentation of the new company, according to Megura, is evident in digital media: The reduced logo allows the distinctive four letters to move around the room, so that new combinations are created over and over again.
LUMO Architects is staying at the old headquarters of the company, which was founded in 1973 and has been redesigned and expanded several times, in Poststrasse in Döttingen.
Alain Baumgartner, MRICS, has been Head Real Estate Portfolio Management and member of the extended management team at Avobis Group AG in Zurich since October 2019. Before that, he worked for over 10 years as a portfolio manager at Swiss Life Asset Management AG, most recently as Head Portfolio Commercial / Centers and Deputy Head of Portfolio Management. Mr. Baumgartner holds a MAS Master's in Advanced Studies in Real Estate Management from the HWZ University of Applied Sciences in Zurich.
Privera combines the two complementary services “Letting Management” and “Trading” in the new “Marketing Switzerland” area. Marcel Frick, previously Head of Letting Management Switzerland, is in charge of the newly created organizational unit and thus combines the marketing expertise of the two departments. The rental management, as well as the trade, however, continue to act as an independent strategic service line of Privera.
In addition, the Center Management division was renamed Retail & Site Management as of January 2021. This better reflects the diverse range of services in the area. The management of shopping centers also includes retail marketing, the coordination of tenants' associations and the management of complex areas that include retail, office and residential space. Dieter Sommer says: "We are convinced that these adjustments will help both our customers and our company."
The coronavirus pandemic has hardly left any traces on the market for rental apartments, writes homegate.ch in a message on the annual review of the homegate.ch rental index. It is created monthly by the real estate portal owned by the TX Group in collaboration with Zürcher Kantonalbank . For 2020, the rent index shows an increase in asking rents for apartments of 0.9 percent year-on-year. This means that apartment rents have even risen faster than in the previous year, explains homegate.ch.
The analysts observed the sharpest increase in rental prices in the year under review with 2.7 percent in Appenzell. In the cantons of Geneva, Thurgau, Zug, Graubünden and Zurich, rents have also risen faster than the Swiss average, with values between 2.6 and 2.3 percent, the press release explains. Rising net immigration is mentioned as the background for the rental price development.
The gap in rent prices between urban and rural cantons that had prevailed in previous years was weakened in the reporting year, the analysts further explain in the press release. On the one hand, they attribute this to the concentration of the construction industry in urban regions. On the other hand, the work in the home office, which was funded during the pandemic, "led to evasive effects in the countryside". Urban living remains in trend despite the pandemic.
Bündner Kälte 3000 AGwill belong to Poenina Holding as of March 31, 2021, the building services group from the Zurich economic area informed in a message . According to her, the relevant contract was signed on January 15th. The notification does not provide any information about the purchase price.
"With the acquisition of Kälte 3000 AG, we are continuing our growth strategy in the core competence areas of heating and cooling," said Jean Claude Bregy, CEO of the Poenina Group, in the press release. The new acquisition, which specializes in services for refrigeration technology, has, in addition to its headquarters in Landquart, branches in Samedan GR, Untereggen SG and Regensdorf ZH. The company's annual turnover is estimated at around 15 million francs.
The previous directors Ronny Berry, Robert Gadient and Pius Gruber will also manage Kälte 3000 AG under the Poenina umbrella. The company will also continue to operate under its old name, informs Poenina in the announcement.
ABB and Oceanco have decided to collaborate in the field of sustainable marine propulsion. Initially, ABB will supply two 2.5 megwatt Azipod units as well as drive and control units for a super yacht from Oceanco, according to a media release .
According to the company, the Azipod system from ABB is based "on a controllable drive system, the electric drive of which is installed in a nacelle below the ship's hull". It can reduce fuel consumption by up to 20 percent compared to conventional shaft drives.
This first delivery is the start of a more intensive cooperation with Oceanco, as ABB writes in its press release. The company expects the sustainable electric powertrain market to grow to more than $ 10 billion by 2025.
“We are very pleased to have signed this first contract with Oceanco and look forward to future cooperation. As an important basis of our relationship, our two companies are united by the claim to sustainably develop our business, ”said Thomas Hackman from ABB Marine & Ports.
PriceHubble is now also present in the Netherlands. At the same time as opening its new presence in Amsterdam, the Zurich-based property valuation specialist is starting a strategic partnership with Yellowtail Conclusion, according to a press release. PriceHubble supports players in the real estate sector with their investment decisions using innovative technologies such as machine learning and big data analytics.
Thomas Berghaus heads the new company PriceHubble Netherlands BV "The real estate market in the Netherlands has been growing for years and the strong influx will further reinforce this trend, especially in the area of residential property development," Berghaus is quoted in the press release. “That is why this location is one of the most attractive in all of Europe. "Our digital product solutions help Dutch brokers, intermediaries and banks to successfully open up the market and create transparency."
PriceHubble and Yellowtail want to jointly develop new service concepts for mortgage advice with the help of digital real estate valuation. "We are therefore proud", says Yellowtail Managing Director Matthijs Mons, "that we can support PriceHubble in entering the Dutch market".
Almost all of the 74 experts surveyed by EY for the Real Estate Investment Market Switzerland 2021 trend barometer rate the attractiveness of the Swiss real estate market as attractive to very attractive, EY informs in a message on the trend barometer. Compared to last year, the attraction to investors has even increased slightly again, it is said there. Only 15 percent of those surveyed expect a decline in investment volume. In the 2020 trend barometer, the corresponding value was 17 percent.
“On a global level, we see a lack of investment alternatives, high investment pressure and increasing economic uncertainty as drivers for the real estate asset class,” Claudio Rudolf, author and head of Transaction Real Estate at EY in Switzerland, is quoted in the press release. Specifically, Rudolf names the pandemic and Brexit as the drivers for volatility. “Against this background, investors recognize a safe haven in the Swiss real estate market that is more resistant to crises than in other countries,” says the real estate expert.
However, the barometer also shows differences within the sectors. "While the developments in the different real estate sectors were more closely correlated in the past – according to the motto 'the tide lifts all boats' – the corona pandemic is making the real estate market more differentiated," explains Daniel Zaugg, Head of Real Estate at EY in Switzerland. Sectors that are less risky, such as residential real estate, are likely to benefit from increased risk aversion among investors, the press release said. The barometer for office properties in central locations and the holiday hotel industry sees good opportunities for a quick recovery from the pandemic. Business hotels, office properties in the periphery and shopping centers, on the other hand, do not see any good chances of recovery in the long term either.
During the first wave of the pandemic, the mortgage market reacted very nervously, writes Comparis in a statement on the current mortgage barometer of the online comparison service. The interest rates for ten-year fixed-rate mortgages rose from 0.98 to just under 1.20 percent towards the end of the first quarter of 2020, it said. The second wave of the pandemic, on the other hand, “has left the mortgage market cold so far,” says Comparis financial expert Frédéric Papp as quoted in the press release.
According to the Comparis surveys, interest rates for fixed-rate mortgages with a ten-year term were between 1.04 and 1.07 percent in the last quarter of 2020. The interest rates for fixed-rate mortgages with a five- and two-year term remained constant over the quarter under review at 0.90 and 0.86 percent, respectively.
Specifically negotiated mortgages usually had significantly lower interest rates than these target rates, explains Comparis in the press release. The company HypoPlus, which belongs to the Comparis Group, offers ten-year fixed-rate mortgages from an interest rate of 0.61 percent. In the coming months, "more dynamism can be expected in the mortgage market," predicts Papp. He assumes that competition among providers will intensify in favor of mortgage borrowers.
Swiss pension funds can invest in high-quality Swiss properties from AST Swiss Life from February 1 to March 31. The investment foundation is planning to open up its two investment groups, Real Estate Switzerland and Commercial Real Estate Switzerland, worth around CHF 500 million. Payment will be made on May 5th.
According to a press release , the capital is to be used to reduce the debt capital ratio, to purchase further properties, to implement new construction projects and for ongoing investments in the portfolio.
The focus of the Real Estate Switzerland investment group is on residential properties in Swiss cities and agglomerations. The Swiss Commercial Real Estate investment group invests in commercial properties with stable returns and stable values in central locations. Both also hold shares in the Glatt shopping center in Wallisellen. Since their launch, both have had “an appealing performance” of 5.63 and 5.10 percent per year, respectively. In addition, the occupancy rate of more than 97 percent is above average for both of them.
Economy Minister Guy Parmelin has set the funding contributions for research institutions of national importance for the period from 2021 to 2024, informed the Department of Economics, Education and Research ( EAER ) in a statement . 31 research institutions located in different departments are to receive a total of 460 million francs. The institutions funded under the Federal Law on the Promotion of Research and Innovation (FIFG) supplement research at universities and in the ETH domain with their work.
The funds from the FIFG are available to research infrastructures, research institutions and technology competence centers. In the funding period from 2021 to 2024, 14 research infrastructures are to be supported with a total of 140 million francs. A further CHF 70 million will be distributed to a total of ten research institutions active in highly specialized areas. Seven technology competence centers are to receive a total of 190 million francs.
The other funds are intended for the financing of special measures, explains the EAER in the communication. In particular, the national funding initiative for personalized medicine is mentioned here. She should receive around 40 million francs.
As early as 2013, the municipality of Glarus declared the Kartoni-Areal and Untere Allmeind areas in Glarus to be key development areas as part of their structure planning, the project company Kartoni Quartier AG informed in a message. A mixed living and working area with private, semi-private and public open spaces is to be created here. A footbridge for pedestrians and bicycles across the Linth will connect the quarter directly to the train station and the center of Glarus.
The project management team at Sutter Projects, in cooperation with the municipality of Glarus, has now been able to win two local investors for the implementation of the project. One of these is the Glarus Pension Fund . It is described in the communication as a guarantor for “a sustainable and far-sighted project that does not allow real estate speculation”.
On the other hand, Sutter and the community were able to get Trümpi Immobilien AG enthusiastic about the project. The Glarus real estate company is "a local partner who understands project development and construction from the ground up," the press release said.
Together with Robert Sutter's Immolmpuls AG, the investors have now founded the Kartoni Quartier AG project company. She will take over the implementation of the construction plans on the Kartoni site. According to the announcement, Kartoni Quartier AG has already acquired all the properties in the area from the previous owners.
Vantage Data Centers is a data center operator based in California. The company is currently expanding in Europe and is investing a total of 2 billion dollars, according to a media release . One of its European locations will be in Winterthur. The company has already started building its campus there.
The three hectare campus in Winterthur will house a total of four data centers with a total area of 37,000 square meters. It will have an output of 40 megawatts. The shell has already been completed. Vantage Data Centers relies on “highly efficient cooling with integrated free cooling and minimal water consumption,” it says. A photovoltaic facade and charging stations for electric vehicles will also be installed.
Vantage Data Centers started expanding in Europe this year. To this end, it has taken over the companies Etix Everywhere from Luxembourg and Next Generation Data from Great Britain, among others. The American company built its first campus in Offenbach near Frankfurt. The second European campus is now being built in Winterthur.
"Winterthur is the first location where we literally started out on the green field", Wolfgang Zepf, Managing Director Vantage Switzerland, is quoted in the press release. "We look forward to welcoming our customers to this highly secure location with the best connectivity in the autumn of next year."
Sika is expanding its collaboration with Cidra Concrete Systems. According to a press release, the Zug-based construction chemicals company has signed an agreement to finance growth with equity capital. This agreement complements the global partnership that has existed since the beginning of 2019 with the North American expert for monitoring and information systems in concrete mixing vehicles. It was closed for the introduction of this data service in the USA and Canada.
Cidra Concrete Systems, headquartered in Eden Prairie, Minnesota, manufactures high-precision on-board systems that measure concrete quality during transport from the concrete plant to the construction site. Concrete manufacturers can use a cloud-based data portal to call up information on concrete quality such as workability or air volume for every vehicle in their fleet in real time. Now this partnership between the two companies is to be extended to other countries. "We are pleased to be able to offer this offer worldwide thanks to Sika's position as market leader," said Cidra boss Scott Anderson.
"With this IoT-based technology we can provide our customers in the concrete industry with new digital solutions", Phillippe Jost, Head Construction Sika, is quoted in the press release. “Optimizing the mix design of concrete” enables Sika customers “to improve the performance of their concrete and their profitability by reducing the number of rejected truck loads”.
Activity in the global real estate investment markets was significantly affected by the Corona crisis in 2020. The total volume of global commercial transactions between January and September 2020 was approximately $ 510 billion, a decrease of 31% from the same period last year. The greater risk aversion of investors and their wait-and-see attitude in view of the further course of the pandemic, the increased fragility of the rental markets and the problems with property inspections are responsible for this. Still, there were signs of recovery in the third quarter (+ 23% QOQ) after hitting a ten-year low in the second quarter of 2020. This increase in transaction activity was favored by the gradual relaxation of restrictions on movement and the gradual adjustment of the players to the new market environment.
American continent hardest hit by the crisis, weaker recovery in Europe However, the pace and extent of the upswing show clear geographical differences:
In Asia, where health crisis management is often seen as the most effective, investor sentiment improved significantly between the second and third quarters of 2020, allowing trading volume to rise again (+ 39% QOQ).
The American double continent, which was harder hit by the pandemic, saw slight growth again this summer, but was unable to compensate for the decline in investment volume of -44% (YOY) that had accrued up to September.
Thanks to a record quarter in the first quarter, Europe in the first nine months of 2020 is only slightly below the level of 2019 (-11% YOY). The UK and Spain are among the countries hardest hit by the investment slowdown, while Germany has held up better. On average, however, the upswing in Europe in the third quarter of 2020 was not very pronounced (+ 9% QOQ).
Swiss investment market defies the crisis Switzerland is the only European country that recorded an increase in trading activities in the first three quarters of 2020 (+ 5% compared to the 2015-2020 average). Although trading volumes fell slightly in certain regions during the lockdown in the second quarter, the Swiss market benefited from a catch-up effect in the third quarter. This summer, CBRE was able to process the largest single transaction in the history of the country (also the second largest in Europe this year): the sale of the Glattzentrum in Wallisellen (ZH).
Like the rental market, the Swiss real estate investment market is increasingly characterized by geographical and sectoral differentiation, which has been reinforced by the pandemic. Investor demand is more concentrated in the core cities and the housing market, while interest in logistics real estate is increasing. Indeed, the fundamentals of these segments have proven to be the strongest since the beginning of the year. In contrast, retail properties and, in some cases, office properties in secondary locations are the subject of greater caution. The liquidity and the price structure on the Swiss real estate investment market have remained intact, as institutional investors continue to have high investment pressure. In particular, the dominance of Swiss investors in the local investment market has contributed to the high level of resilience, in contrast to countries such as the United Kingdom or the Netherlands, which are significantly more exposed to international capital flows. While the recovery in transaction activity picked up even further at the beginning of the fourth quarter of 2020, there are many indications that the market will continue to be very dynamic in 2021.
Tegut… gute Lebensmittel GmbH & Co. KG is a German subsidiary of the Migros retailer. The company currently operates primarily supermarkets that focus on organic products. Now it is also testing a new store concept. The new supermarket is open around the clock and has no cashiers. Customers can scan their items and pay by app or credit card. The store is monitored with several cameras and 3D sensors.
For the design and construction of the first test shop in Fulda, tegut… gute Lebensmittel GmbH & Co. KG obtained specialist knowledge from Obwalden. The 50 square meter store was co-developed and realized by Neue Holzbau AG and HP Gasser AG , both from Lungern OW, according to a joint communication. Specifically, the two companies built the shop out of four elements. The finished shop was then delivered to Fulda by special transport. First and foremost, the companies rely on wood, invisible steel parts and the high-performance lanyard GSA.
The label “Made in Lungern” has proven itself well in Germany, according to the announcement. Among other things, the first test shop won the 2020 Retail Innovation Prize. This is also thanks to the support of the Obwalden economic development agency.
In this year's edition of the Avenir Suisse Freedom Index, a total of 33 civil and economic indicators were evaluated, the think tank informs in the presentation of the ranking of the Swiss cantons. Liechtenstein, which was included for the first time this year, made it from scratch to the top spot. Liechtenstein was able to collect 70 points across all indicators.
The canton of Appenzell Ausserrhoden has only one point less. Avenir Suisse wrote in a press release on the current Freedom Index that he was “overshadowed by long-time front runners Aargau and last year's winner Schwyz”. This year, however, "he succeeded in making his breakthrough to the top of the Swiss cantons". The canton was able to score points in terms of both economic and civil liberties. In the presentation, the analysts highlight, among other things, the low tax burden of an average family, the decentralization and liberal solutions in homeschooling.
With a rise above eight ranks to eleventh place, the canton of St.Gallen has made the biggest leap forward year-on-year, the analysts explain in the presentation. St.Gallen has made progress in particular with regard to public safety, and the canton has once again achieved top marks with the Public Information Act and the debt brake. As a shortcoming, the analysts chalk the canton to a burqa ban and a mandatory church tax for companies.
The sixth-placed canton of Jura has the best values for civil liberties in the freedom ranking. Last year's front runner, Schwyz, was able to maintain its top position in Switzerland this year, at least in terms of economic indicators. Overall, the canton of Schwyz achieved fourth place in the freedom index this year.
The Migros Cooperative Zurich sells the Zentrum Witikon to the largest Swiss life insurance group, Swiss Life . The decision to sell was made as part of a regular review of the property portfolio, according to the food company in a press release . He puts an end to the adjustment of the property portfolio that has taken place over several years.
The Migros supermarket branch has existed since the Witikon Center opened in 1970. It was bought by Migros Zurich in 2012 and completely renovated in 2017. The parties have agreed not to disclose the sales price.
As of the beginning of February 2021, UBS Fund Management (Switzerland) AG will take over the management of the Swiss real estate fund Residentia, UBS informs in a message . The listed fund mainly holds residential properties in the canton of Ticino. The announcement puts the total assets of Residentia's portfolio at around CHF 275 million.
With the takeover of Residentia, the Zurich-based bank wants to strengthen its asset management in the real estate sector in southern Switzerland. "We believe in the Ticino real estate market," Daniel Brüllmann, Head of Real Estate DACH at UBS Asset Management, is quoted in the press release. He sees his company "ideally positioned for this takeover".
UBS Switzerland AG will act as a deposit bank for Residentia, is further explained in the announcement. The Pagani Real Estate SA of Residentia co-founder Matteo Pagani is to support the fund management company in Ticino as a “local presence”.
Urban Connect AG was able to successfully conclude a seed financing round, according to a media release. The Mobility-as-a-Service company took in 2.5 million francs.
According to the announcement, Urban Connect is Europe's first multimodal mobility platform that enables companies to operate low-emission fleets. Urban Connect offers all vehicles – from electric bikes and electric scooters to electric cargo bikes and electric cars for shared use. They can be booked via an app. In addition, the app allows the "simple" integration of existing vehicle fleets. This offer helps companies "to create greener, smarter and healthier work environments – and cleaner cities for everyone," CEO Judith Häberli is quoted in the press release.
Part of the financing round that has now been concluded is a loan guarantee from the technology fund of the Federal Office for the Environment . According to its website, this “guarantees loans to Swiss companies whose innovative products enable a sustainable reduction in greenhouse gas emissions”. This support “allows us to intensify our activities”, says Judith Häberli.
The fresh funds would flow into the further development of the digital mobility platform, "especially for the control of large vehicle fleets", it says in the announcement. Furthermore, the development of our own data analysis software is planned. With their help, Urban Connect can give its customers data-based recommendations for the effective utilization of their vehicle fleets.
Basel, Bern, Lugano, Lucerne, St.Gallen, Winterthur and Zurich are already working together on the next national exhibition, " NEXPO – the new Expo ". Now, within this framework, they also want to jointly develop models for future cooperation between intelligent cities, according to a media release from the canton of Basel-Stadt. Its cantonal and urban development in the presidential department is taking the lead in a first pilot project of the initiative.
With “Smart Inter-City – our common path into the future”, the participants not only want to develop models of cooperation between so-called Smart Cities, but also to implement them. By networking the seven cities, existing synergies are to be used. The project is also open to partners from business, science and the general public.
The pilot project is to be promoted at the respective innovation locations of the participating cities. In Basel, for example, this includes the Smart City Lab Basel , which was launched by the canton and the SBB.
According to a report from the Federal Statistical Office ( FSO ), the Swiss residential property price index (IMPI), which was determined for the first time, closed at 100.8 points in the third quarter of 2020. Compared to the previous quarter, this corresponds to growth of 0.2 percent. In a year-on-year comparison, the analysts of the FSO measured an increase in prices of 2.6 percent. The base value of the index was set at 100 points in the fourth quarter of 2019.
With regard to the changes compared to the previous quarter, the analysts identify opposing developments in single-family homes and condominiums in the quarter under review. The prices for single-family homes had risen by 1.1 percent in a quarterly comparison. By contrast, prices for condominiums were 0.6 percent lower in the quarter under review than in the previous quarter.
The analysts had observed particularly significant increases in the prices for single-family houses of 2.6 and 2.2 percent in the urban communities of the large agglomerations and the rural communities. The most significant declines in prices for condominiums were registered in the intermediate and rual communities, each with minus 1.1 percent.
Vebego Schweiz Holding AG offers various solutions in the real estate industry. The Zurich-based company is now teaming up with Archilyse , a spin-off from the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology Zurich ( ETH ).
Archilyse has developed real estate analysis software. This can create virtual models of real estate, which are integrated into a model of the environment. For example, Archilyse can calculate how much sunlight flows into the rooms or what the view is. The analyzes are offered, for example, to project developers, architects or real estate companies who can market them.
The goal of the partnership between Vebego and Archilyse is to be “at the forefront of the market” and to market real estate technologies internationally, according to a media release . Archilyse will work with the Vebego subsidiary Move Consultants , among others.
"The cooperation with Move Consultants as the actual 'Master of Floor Plan and Areas' takes Archilyse and its business model to a new level", Matthias Standfest, founder and CEO of Archilyse, is quoted in the press release. "On the one hand, Move is number one when it comes to the digital processing of real estate data and, on the other hand, Move's numerous customers can benefit from the extensive Archilyse analyzes without any great effort".
T-Systems has received accreditation as an official Red Hat partner in Switzerland. According to a media release from T-Systems, the technology group relies on Red Hat solutions in application management. The two companies also want to work together on all cloud solutions and DevOps (Development and IT Operations) -based software development on the T-Systems platform AppAgile. The partners are already working together in the Europe, Middle East and Africa (EMEA) region.
The new cooperation in Switzerland aims at reselling, it says in the announcement. In addition, it should “go in the direction of subscription models and the provision of managed services for Red Hat solutions by T-Systems”. In addition, both partners plan to jointly create new services based on proven Red Hat products. They are to be enriched with integration and managed services expertise from T-Systems.
T-Systems certification as a Red Hat partner brings both companies more competitive strength. It opens up access to interesting tenders for regulated industries such as the public sector or the healthcare sector.
"T-Systems is a well-known and active player in the Swiss IT landscape," Richard Zobrist, Head of Partner & Alliances Switzerland at Red Hat, is quoted in the press release. "We expect a lot from the reputation, the extensive know-how and the solid track record of the digital service provider for the expansion of our business in Switzerland and especially for the advance into new industries and customer segments."
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